My laboratory has a long standing interest in identifying genes required for normal skin development and understanding how they function.We have discovered that defects in some of these genes cause inherited skin diseases characterized by a very fragile skin, which blisters easily and may result in neonatal death.Defects in other genes required for normal skin development predispose individuals to develop skin cancer.We are currently generating induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (iPSCs) from patients with inherited skin fragility syndromes using methods which do not require viral vectors, and determining whether genome editing techniques can be used to correct the genetic defect in these patient-specific iPSCs. Our ultimate goal is return keratinocytes derived from genetically corrected iPSCs to the same patient as an autograft.My laboratory is also isolating and characterizing skin cancer stem cells.An improved understanding of cancer stem cells could result in the development of novel therapeutic strategies that specifically target cancer stem cells for destruction and prevent tumor recurrence.